Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle’s re-election warchest nearing $180,000
Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle has raised more than $179,000 since October for his re-election campaign. HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle continues to reel in contributions for his re-election bid. Campaign finance records on file with the Madison County probate judge’s office show that Battle raised $16,200 in January, giving him a total of $179,135 since October. He reported a campaign balance of $139,457 as of Jan. 31, after subtracting costs for advertising, food for campaign events and related expenses. “It’s a real testament to the work the mayor has done that so many people are willing to step up and help him financially,” Battle’s campaign consultant, Dave Driscoll, said Wednesday. “The city is in good shape financially, we keep being named a top place to live in the country. “We have a good record to run on.” Unofficial city government watchdog Jackie Reed is Battle’s only announced opponent for the Aug. 28 municipal election. Reed has run for mayor six other times, with her best showing coming in the 2000 election. She collected 4.4 percent of the vote that year, finishing behind Loretta Spencer and Herb Dixon but ahead of Jim Casey. Spencer, who served three terms as mayor before losing to Battle in 2008, is said to be contemplating another run. She declined to comment on the rumors Wednesday. “I just worry about my city as a citizen,” Spencer said. Another potential candidate, subdivision developer Sandra Steele , told The Times that she is “still open” to running for mayor but has not made a decision. “I’m really focused on business right now,” Steele said Wednesday, “but I am still considering the race.” Jess Brown, a political science professor at Athens State University, said Steele should announce her candidacy soon if she intends to run. People like Steele who have never sought public office typically need to campaign for several months in order to build “name ID” with voters, Brown said. “If I’m Steele, I want to start early and develop my campaign theme and get people to know me,” he said Wednesday. “If I’m Spencer, I don’t think it matters as much because she’s done it before and has a ready-made (campaign) organization.” Battle’s most recent contributors include pharmaceutical entrepreneur Bill Propst, commercial real estate broker Don Beck, the Goodwyn Mills and Cawood engineering firm and Sam Yeager, whose company wants to build high-end apartments at the old Councill Courts public housing site. Homebuilder Jeff Benton gave a total of $10,000 to Battle’s re-election campaign under his own name and through a corporation…
Alabama Gov. Robert Bentley requests federal aid for cities, counties in tornado cleanup
Joe Songer — The Birmingham News Joel Ward of 6232 Jonathan’s Way in Trussville searches through a huge debris pile on the street near his home looking for family belongings. The January 23rd tornado scattered several families debris together. The debris piles ore 8-12 feet high and stretch several blocks in Pilgrim’s Rest. Tornado debris is piling up on street curbs in neighborhoods and roadsides around the tornado hit areas of Clay, Trussville and Center Point. Residents who are continuing the clean up are asking when the debris will be cleared and who is doing it. (The Birmingham News/Joe Songer). Tornado debris piling up in neighborhoods gallery (13 photos) MONTGOMERY, Alabama — Gov. Robert Bentley today asked for federal aid to help jurisdictions in Jefferson, Chilton and Perry counties pay cleanup and other expenses related to tornadoes that hit the state on Jan. 23. If the Federal Emergency Management Agency approves the request, cities and counties affected by the storms would be eligible to get reimbursements for a portion of their expenses arising from the storms. “Recovering from these storms is a long-term process,” Bentley said. “I am hopeful the federal government will take into consideration the financial needs of the individual municipalities and other local governments that have worked diligently to repair damage and clear debris in the wake of the storms.” The request for aid to governments is in addition to federal assistance that already has been granted to individual storm victims i n those counties.
2 Alabama entries in Dwell magazine’s historic building preservation contest
Merchants & Farmers Bank in Roanoke, Alabama, built in 1921, is one of the state’s entries in Dwell magazine’s Rethinking Preservation contest. (Photo courtesy of Kesa Johnston Dunn, builder owner who hopes to remodel the old bank) Dwell magazine is rethinking preservation. The magazine whose tagline is “At home in the modern world” is honoring the precedents of architecture past with a contest that holds a $10,000 prize for the restoration of a worthy landmark . Dwell readers were asked to nominate historically valuable buildings that have seen better days. The public can vote for the most deserving landmark, and judges will decide among the top 10 most vote-receiving entries. Dwell and its partner Sub-Zero will award the person who nominated the winning entry a wine storage unit from Sub-Zero, and the companies will donate $10,000 to a preservation organization in the town of the favored building. Dozens of entries are listed for voters’ consideration, and two are in Alabama. Mobile’s National African American Archives building has fallen into disrepair after hurricanes, floods and the torrential rains that frequently pelt the Gulf Coast. The person who submitted the library’s nomination writes: “The National African American Archives, a place that attempts to preserve local African American history, in Mobile, Alabama, was once the home to the Davis Avenue Branch Library, the only library in the city available to descendents of African slaves from 1932 through the 1960s. But its significance doesn’t stop there. It was designed by famed architect George Bigelow Rogers and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington, DC.” Click here to cast your vote for the National African American Archives in Mobile . The second nomination in our state is in the east central Alabama of Roanoke. Main Street’s Merchants & Farmers Bank is the only three-story building in the city’s downtown area. The building was built as First National Bank in 1921 and was later renamed. The person who nominated the bank building for the revitalization cash prize wrote this: “Main Street Roanoke was THE place to be at one time and with hope, help, hard work and out of the box thinking … can be a beautiful street once again. … When I moved to Roanoke eight years ago I first noticed the beautiful old buildings and was horrified that most were crumbling and unoccupied. Since that time, the local Rotary Club along with many private individuals have begun the slow process …
Huntsville-area Marines-to-be and their families to get taste of boot camp at ‘family night’
A Marine Corps drill instructor works with a student during a “family night” at Columbia High School in 2010. Next week, future Marines and their families can get a preview of the boot camp experience during another family night hosted by the Marine Corps Recruiting Substation Huntsville at Columbia High School from 6-9 p.m. Feb. 15, and at Lawrence County High School Feb. 16. (The Huntsville Times/Eric Schultz) HUNTSVILLE, Alabama –Future Marines and their families will get a preview of the boot camp experience – complete with yelling and push-ups – during a “family night” hosted by the Marine Corps Recruiting Substation Huntsville at Columbia High School from 6-9 p.m. Feb. 15. The Decatur substation will also host a family night, from 6-9 p.m., Feb. 16, at Lawrence County High School. Both events will feature real drill instructors from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot, Parris Island, S.C. And they won’t be holding back “verbal instruction or physical discipline from the future Marines,” according to a statement, or rather understatement, from the Corps. Family members will get the chance to ask the drill instructors questions about how and why they do what they do. “The purpose of this event is to provide insight for our future Marines and their families into the challenges and development they will experience while attending recruit training in the next few months,” according to the statement. During a family night a couple of years ago, a Marine said the events are also a chance for the families in the Huntsville area to meet, and “to show that the Marine Corps is a brotherhood, it is a family, and that we’re all bound together.” These future Marines are called “poolees” and have already taken the Oath of Enlistment. They are currently members of the Delayed Entry Program, awaiting orders to Recruit Training (AKA “boot camp”). About 40 future Marines from the area are expected to attend the Family Nights, which are open to the public. Anyone interested in learning more should contact Sgt. Roger Nelson, Marketing/Public Affairs Staff Non-Commissioned Officer-In-Charge, Marine Corps Recruiting Station Nashville, at 615-975-8422.
Slain Mobile Officer Steven Green "died doing what he loved" (gallery, updated)
Press-Register staff The hearse arrives with the body of slain Mobile Police Officer Steven Green Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2012, at Sunlight District Auditorium in Prichard, Ala. Green was killed in the line of duty Feb. 3 after transporting a prisoner to Mobile County Metro Jail. (Press-Register/Mike Kittrell) Funeral Service for Officer Steven Green 02.08.2012 gallery (23 photos) MOBILE, Alabama — Hailed as a hero, slain Mobile Police Officer Steven Green was remembered during a funeral service today as an outstanding officer who loved his job, his family and a wide circle of close friends. Green, 36, who had been an officer for less than two years, died Friday after being stabbed by a robbery suspect he was transporting to jail . More than 500 people attended a standing-room only service that included Mobile Mayor Sam Jones and the City Council, Mobile’s County Commissioners as well as judges and the District Attorneys from Mobile and Baldwin County. Hundreds more police and other law enforcement officials stood outside the Sunlight District Auditorium in Prichard for more than four hours to show their respect for the fallen officer and his family. Green, one of seven children, grew up two doors down from State Rep. Napoleon Bracy, who spoke at length about their friendship during the funeral. “We did everything together,” Bracy said. “If we played cops and robbers, Steve was going to be a cop.” Bracy said the young men joined the Prichard Police Explorers together, noting that former Prichard Police Capt. James Parrish was among their mentors. During the service, Mobile Mayor Sam Jones read a letter from the office of President Barack Obama, and offered his own prayers and blessings to Green’s family: “We are saddened by the loss, but this is a home-going celebration for one who was very well respected.” Joseph Jones, a longtime friend who said he worked with Green for about a decade as a school security officer, said the fallen officer was as close as a brother to him. “Steven Green had old folks wisdom,” Jones said, eliciting chuckles from the crowd. “We talked on the phone for hours, like women.” At one point, Jones spoke directly to Green’s immediate family, and had his grandfather stand up to be recognized. “Steven Green was crazy about his family,” Jones said. “He wanted to be…
Who’s smarter than a sixth-grader and who got the math right? Here’s the answer to yesterday’s word problem
Press-Register file photo MOBILE, Alabama – - Thousands of al.com readers have viewed a sixth-grade math problem posted here Tuesday. And so far, more than 100 commenters have taken a stab at answering it. So, who’s right? First, the question: A class has 29 students. Twenty students have dogs; 15 have cats. How many have both dogs and cats? Speaker Freeman Hrabowski, president of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, posed the problem during an Education Summit in Mobile Tuesday. Turns out, the very first al.com person to reply, cookingjosh , got the right answer (spoiler alert: we’ll reveal it below). But that didn’t stop a healthy math debate. Some thought there wasn’t enough information to come to a conclusion. Several did the calculations and came up with a correct number, but not the complete answer (it’s a range of numbers). The debate even spawned off additional math problems in the comments. Here’s a good explanation of how to solve the problem, from andyggtw : Maths follow: D – variable defined as dogs only; C – variable defined as cats only; B – variable defined as both; A – variable defined as “Anti-pet” (i.e. no pet). A + B + C + D = 29 (definition) Therefore, A – B = -6 OR (rewritten) B = 6 + A; Values of A may be no less than 0 and no greater than 9 (When C = 0, i.e. no cats only) Therefore, 6 ≤ B ≤ 15 In English, that’s between 6 and 15. That was fun, so we might try this again. If there are any teachers out there who would like to try to stump our readers, email a question to [email protected] .
Alabama’s congressmen get a poor environmental evaluation and many commenters say that’s fine
WASHINGTON — A leading environmental watchdog has ranked Alabama’s GOP-dominated congressional delegation as among the worst in protecting public health and preserving the environment, Birmingham News Washington correspondent Mary Orndorff reports The League of Conservation Voters focused on 35 votes from last year on issues such as offshore drilling, flood insurance, renewable energy, air pollution, endangered species and the authority of the Environmental Protection Agency. Alabama’s average score in the U.S. House was 21 out of 100. Six of the seven Alabama House members scored 14 or less. The score of the lone Democrat, Rep. Terri Sewell of Birmingham, was 80. The average score of all 435 House members was 45. The reaction of the online community to the news seemed mirror the voting of the delegation. Read some of what people are saying: • “If the environmentalist don’t like them, they must be doing something right.” — realsickofit • “Alabama – proudly marching backward to the 19th century!” — dividebyzero • “Tree huggers are rated worse by me!” — steve • “This bunch of so called “enviormental lovers” are no different than any other lobbyist group. But they got a bunch of folks brainwashed into thinking they love them and care about them. It is all about……yep…..drum roll……..dollars and cents. They really don’t love you like you think they do. But they do love money, and they are smart enough to make fools out of some.” — bpin Join the conversation, add a comment.
Davis Hills teacher wins job back in hearing with retired judge.
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — A Davis Hills Middle School teacher has won her job back in what is believed to be the first termination process completed under the state’s new tenure law. Judge Sandra H. Storm, a retired circuit judge, reversed the termination of Jo Ann Thompson, who was fired in August for taking leave during the first week of school, despite being denied the leave by her principal and Superintendent Casey Wardynski. Storm ruled that Thompson did neglect her duty in going against the wishes of her superiors, but that her termination was “arbitrary.” She cited the fact that Thompson’s superiors told her she would face one punishment, but doled out another. Thompson had scheduled her leave and paid her airfare to go to a religious convention she had been allowed to attend in past years. During a November hearing before the Huntsville school board, Thompson testified that she asked newly-appointed Davis Hills Principal Kurus Jamison what would happen if she went on a trip despite being denied the leave to do so, and he told her he would “write her up.” When she emailed Wardynski about the matter, he wrote back that he supported the principal completely, which Thompson said she took to mean he supported the write-up. “Thompson took the leave against the wishes of her superiors, but there is no doubt that she relied on their representations as to the consequences of taking that leave,” Storm wrote. “She should not be terminated under these circumstances.” Fred Fohrell, Thompson’s attorney, said he and his client were pleased with Storm’s ruling . “This is a win, not only for Mrs. Thompson, but for all Huntsville City Schools employees and, really, a win for everyone,” Fohrell said. “It shows that everyone, including teachers, is entitled to due process and a neutral hearing.” Wardynski, who was in Montgomery today, issued a statement saying that the hearing officer’s decision will make it “hard to improve the educational culture in those schools and classrooms in which the desires of the adults come before the needs of the…
Lee County grand jury indictment charges violin teacher with child enticement
Mario Urbina is charged with enticing a child for immoral purposes. (Auburn Police Department) AUBURN, Alabama — A Columbus, Ga., man was arrested today after surrendering to authorities on an indictment charging him with child enticement for immoral purposes, according to the Auburn Police Department. The suspect was previously arrested on Nov. 23 on a warrant charging him with sexual abuse of a child less than 12 years old. He was giving the female victim private violin lessons. The indictment was issued by the Lee County grand jury after a representative in the department of Human Resources filed the report on Oct. 25. Mario R. Urbina, 46, was arrested and taken to the Lee County Detention Center. Bond was set at $5,000.
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